You can forgive the Dallas Cowboys for not seeing the forest for the trees for a moment. This was a team with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations entering the 2023 season. They thought they finally had the horses to lift the franchise’s first Lombardi Trophy since 1995.
Then reality came ruthlessly crashing down in the form of a 49ers’ 42-10 massacre of Dallas on Sunday Night Football. In the immediate aftermath, it’s hard to accept that you’re not good enough, that you don’t belong with the big boys, and that all of your offseason hard work probably meant nothing.
But that doesn’t remotely excuse Micah Parsons, who showed a remarkable lack of self-awareness after the Cowboys’ pantsing on national television. According to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News, Parsons was in full-on cope mode. He proclaimed that the score — which, again, saw the 49ers win by over 30 points — doesn’t accurately reflect the difference between the two long-time NFC rivals.
Parsons has never sounded more delusional:
Cowboys DE Micah Parsons: "I don't think [the 49ers] are at a higher level than us. I think we're the same caliber playoff team. Same talent. Same standards. I just feel like we need to reconsider …and fix some things. …The score doesn't really show what happened out there."
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) October 9, 2023
Let’s rip Parsons’ statement piece by piece in bullet points:
- The 49ers ARE at a higher level than the Cowboys. Most of this same San Francisco roster has played in three of the last four NFC title games, something Dallas hasn’t achieved since 1995.
- The Cowboys are NOT a similar-caliber playoff team. Their sole two playoff wins in the Dak Prescott era came over fledgling Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers squads in the Wild Card Round.
- The Cowboys do NOT have the same talent. While their roster is indeed Very Good, San Francisco has perennial All-Pro caliber players everywhere. And at quarterback, Brock Purdy is probably better than Prescott at this point.
- The Cowboys do NOT have the same standards. Even reaching the NFC title game would be considered a holiday in the Dallas area. Just reaching the NFC title game and falling short again would be a massive disappointment for the Bay Area.
- There is NO easy fix for what the 49ers did to the Cowboys. While I don’t doubt they’ll put a better foot forward if they meet again in January, San Francisco outclassed Dallas on Sunday evening. The score DOES really show what happened out there.
It’s on Parsons to put his money where his mouth is. Maybe he’s right. Maybe the Cowboys are close to the 49ers. But absolutely nothing from Sunday night suggests that is true.
This was how Twitter reacted
“The score doesn’t show what really happened”
Okayyy Micah, let’s dig a little deeper then 🤣 https://t.co/AF5U4cInht pic.twitter.com/IfymEPtcDX
— Danny G (@DannyG_49) October 9, 2023
The score sure did feel representative of what I watched https://t.co/bLKpNUqhAs
— Steven Ruiz (@theStevenRuiz) October 9, 2023
I admire the confidence. But the 49ers have much more talent. https://t.co/fPnxVaRyOa
— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) October 9, 2023
Ehhhhhh https://t.co/kvzA1c5aZf
— Brad Spielberger, Esq. (@PFF_Brad) October 9, 2023
You guys were the ones calling this a measuring stick game. Now you get blown out and say you’re at the same level? https://t.co/u20CzWozP1 pic.twitter.com/iA72dloksw
— Rob “Stats” Guerrera (@StatsOnFire) October 9, 2023
We all watched it my man. It’s OK to say you need to go back to the drawing board after that humbling experience. https://t.co/HrQoNpS9hv
— Kate (@KJPhillips10) October 9, 2023
This dude creating his own false reality. https://t.co/EirbDHUTGu pic.twitter.com/qsRBwLOoW2
— #Random49ers (@Random49ers) October 9, 2023
Reconsider what? The head coach? The offensive coordinator? https://t.co/a7N46Ozkur
— Rich (@richjmadrid) October 9, 2023
I get trying to put a brave face on things after a loss, but this is delusional from Micah Parsons. The score in the Cowboys-49ers game absolutely showed what happened out there: Dallas got waxed. https://t.co/A7BzLOz9xv
— James Surowiecki (@JamesSurowiecki) October 9, 2023
